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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27398872">A Silent Gift</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winner_of_the_disability_bingo/pseuds/Winner_of_the_disability_bingo'>Winner_of_the_disability_bingo</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>A Silent Voice [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Hiccup can talk to Dragons, Sort Of, Soulmates, he is also sort of part dragon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 20:48:28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>4,293</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27398872</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winner_of_the_disability_bingo/pseuds/Winner_of_the_disability_bingo</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The Red death had been defeated. Hiccup and Toothless enjoyed practicing their flying. Suddenly, the other Berk dragons vanished. Hiccup didn't know where they went, and neither did Toothless. <br/>Essentially, Gift of the Night Fury within the ASV universe.<br/>Reading the first part of this is recommended but not necessary.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III &amp; Toothless</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>A Silent Voice [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1576417</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>100</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Silent Gift</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>
<p>Hiccup woke the same way he usually did, with Toothless pushing him off the bed. He wheezed in pain when he landed on one of the nubs on his back. Toothless uttered a quick apology before lifting Hiccup by the back of his shirt and pushing him towards the saddle.</p>
<p><em>"Okay, Okay, Mr Bossy."</em> Toothless huffed indignantly.</p>
<p><span><em>"I am NOT bossy."</em></span> Hiccup purred goodnaturedly, bending to pick up the saddle.</p>
<p>Toothless sat still as he attached the saddle. He would really need to find a way to make it easier to put on and take off.</p>
<p>When the saddle was on, Toothless pushed himself through Hiccup's legs, tossing him onto the dragon's back. He gave Hiccup a moment to put his helmet and mask on and clip himself in before leaping out the window.</p>
<p>They flew just over the buildings, barely avoiding a few dragons who were up early. There weren't too many Vikings out yet, so the pair did one lap of the village, checking if things were okay.</p>
<p>Everything was fine, so they flew up and over the mountain. They did several laps of the island, both to oversee what was going on and for fun. On the sixth lap, they slowed down as they neared the sea-stacks they had been using to practice.</p>
<p>As they flew closer to a bridge-like stack, Hiccup grinned.</p>
<p><em>"You ready?"</em> Toothless grumbled but steadied himself, flying slightly higher.</p>
<p>Hiccup unhooked himself and stood up. His balance was still off with his prosthetic, but Toothless was steady, making it much easier. Hopefully, when his wings grew in, he could use them to get better at balancing.</p>
<p>Just before he hit the bridged stack, he jumped. The back of his boot hit the edge as he came back down, but otherwise, he managed to avoid touching the stack. He was getting better.</p>
<p>After dodging the stack came the hard part. He had only managed to land directly on Toothless once before, and he hadn't connected to the peddle in time so they had both fallen into the water.</p>
<p>Hiccup kept his eyes on where Toothless' head had just appeared, he leaned in that direction as much as he could. A second later, he was in the saddle. There was half-a-second of panic where he fumbled trying to hook himself in, but he managed it.</p>
<p>Both he and Toothless crowed in joy at their success. With their new confidence, the two repeated the manoeuvre.</p>
<p>As they came out of their third successful try, a swarm of dragons Hiccup hadn't seen flew past them.</p>
<p>Hiccup tried to get the dragons' attention, but failed. One knocked the helmet off his head. Toothless dived to try to catch it but it landed in the water before they reached it. Toothless crooned in distress, likely sensing Hiccup's own distress, but Hiccup reassured him.</p>
<p><em>"We'll come back for it. Do you know what the dragons are doing, and why they aren't responding?"</em> Toothless raised his head to gaze at the swarm passing overhead.</p>
<p>
  <span>
    <em>"They do this once every Weather-Cycle. I do not know why. They are not responding because they are following their Instinct."</em>
  </span>
</p>
<p>Toothless had told him that, sometimes, a dragon's instinct was so strong that they lost rational thought. Alpha-Dragons controlled their Nest by matching their voice or presence with the feeling of instincts. They could then control those dragons with that fake instinct.</p>
<p>If Toothless didn't know and they were following their instincts, Hiccup would have to wait until they returned for answers.</p>
<p>As they flew closer to Berk, Hiccup noticed dragons from the village. He tried calling out to them, but they didn't respond.</p>
<p>On Berk, everyone was crowding the cliff edge. They were yelling for their dragons. When Toothless landed, the Vikings ran up to him, asking too many questions for Hiccup to understand.</p>
<p>When Hiccup started to back up, Toothless reared up on his hind legs, flaring his wings and baring his teeth. Immediately, the Vikings backed off. Dad came to the front of the group, Astrid at his side.</p>
<p>"Hiccup, where are all our dragons going?" Hiccup tried to speak, but all that came out was a wheezing growl. Gods, he hated the cold. Instead, he used sign-language.</p>
<p><span>"Toothless say this happen every year. Do not worry. I do not know where they are but they will return."</span> The Vikings relaxed at the reassurance that their dragons weren't gone forever. However, they still looked significantly downcast.</p>
<p>Dad looked over the village and sighed, mumbling about changing plans. He ushered the village into the Great Hall so that Hiccup could properly explain. Possibly with his voice once he was warmed up.</p>
<hr/>
<p>The other teens were clearly upset. Except Fishlegs, for some reason.</p>
<p>"Well, that was kinda depressing," Ruffnut grumbled. Astrid sighed.</p>
<p>"I know. I was looking forward to spending the holidays with Stormfly." The others mumbled their agreement. Hiccup stayed out of the conversation, since his Bonded was still on Berk. Fishlegs was whistling. Was he trying to hide that he was upset?</p>
<p>Tuffnut also noticed Fishlegs' odd behaviour.</p>
<p>"What are you so happy about? Don't you miss Meatlug?" Hiccup, wouldn't have been so blunt about it, but Tuffnut did have a point.</p>
<p>Fishlegs stopped.</p>
<p>"Me? Oh, yeah." He brought his hand to his eyes and began making an odd sound. It took Hiccup a moment to realise he was crying (or pretending to cry? Hiccup's crying sounded more like a dragon than a human and he had never heard anyone else cry around him). "I miss him so much." Hiccup had thought about telling Fishlegs that Meatlug was a girl, but she had decided to wait and see how long it took him to figure it out. He respected her decision, and it was kind of funny.</p>
<p>Fishlegs hid his face behind his hand. He lifted it to glance at them. When he made eye contact with Hiccup, he yelped and ran off.</p>
<p>"Well, good night!" The remaining teens looked amongst themselves before shrugging. Fishlegs was a weird guy.</p>
<p>"I've got an idea! Let's come up with a bunch of new holiday traditions. You know, to bury the sadness! Until our dragons get back at least." The other three groaned.</p>
<p>"Ash has a good idea." The other three groaned louder.</p>
<p>"Easy for you to say. Your dragon can't go anywhere without you."</p>
<p>…Tuffnut was right. Hiccup knew that Toothless enjoyed their time together, but it was unfair that Hiccup could move around on his own and Toothless couldn't.</p>
<p>Maybe he could do something about that.</p>
<hr/>
<p>He spent the rest of the night sketching schematics for a tail Toothless could use. Well, all night until Toothless lifted him up and dropped him in their bed.</p>
<p>By breakfast the next morning, he had what was almost the perfect design. He'd have to try it out in the forge to see how it worked.</p>
<p>He didn't tell Toothless what he was doing. He wanted it to be a surprise. Every ten or so minutes, Toothless would check in from wherever he was and ask the same thing.</p>
<p>
  <span>
    <em>"What are you doing?"</em>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"It's a secret. I promise you'll love it."</em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>
    <em>"You cannot know that."</em>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"You don't know what I do or don't know."</em>
</p>
<p>Just as he was finishing the prototype, Astrid walked into the forge, carrying something that smelled <em>awful</em>. She stopped in the doorway and called him. He growled lightly to get her attention and beckoned her in. she smiled brightly, holding one of the horrible smelling mugs out to him.</p>
<p>"Happy holidays. From me to you." He stared at the drink warily. Option one, refuse and upset Astrid. Option two, drink it and die from food poisoning. Option three, make up an excuse.</p>
<p>"Sorry Ash, I don't think I can drink that." At her confused, slightly hurt expression, he continued. "With this," he gestured to his face, "there are things that I can't eat." Her eyes widened in understanding and she put the mug back on the plate. Disaster avoided. His excuse also wasn't untrue.</p>
<p>Astrid looked over the table while Hiccup turned back to his work. She took one of the sketches off the table, taking a second to read the notes scribbled on.</p>
<p>"You're making Toothless a tail? What's wrong with the one he's got?" Hiccup continued to work as he answered her.</p>
<p>"Nothing. I was thinking a<span>d</span>out what Tu<span>th</span>nut said. I want Toothless to <span>d</span>e a<span>d</span>le to <span>th</span>ly without <span>n</span>e. So, I'<span>n</span> <span>n</span>aking this." She nodded her understanding and smiled brightly.</p>
<p>"What a great gift. Good luck. I'm going to see if anyone else wants this." Hiccup waved as she practically skipped out of the forge. Gods help anyone who had to drink whatever she put in those mugs.</p>
<hr/>
<p>It took two more days to perfect the mechanical tail. Toothless was relentless in his curiosity. When Hiccup told him that the surprise was done, he raced through and around the village, knocking over at least five Vikings.</p>
<p>They met each other at their house. Toothless arrived first and left paw prints skid marks all through the snow. He stopped in front of Hiccup, looking at him expectedly.</p>
<p>Hiccup knelt in the snow, unwrapping the gift.</p>
<p>
  <em>"Give me your tail for a minute."</em>
</p>
<p>Toothless did so. Hiccup took off the old prosthetic and began clipping in the new one. It took longer than he expected. He'd have to improve the design.</p>
<p>The second he stood up, Toothless started jumping around, trying to see what Hiccup had done. He stopped when the tail flared open. Hiccup and Toothless watched as the mechanical moved with the real one, opening and closing at the same time. Toothless brought the tail to his face and sniffed it. Hiccup smiled.</p>
<p><em>"I made it. It's so you can fly without me."</em> Toothless looked up when he spoke.</p>
<p><span><em>"You did this for me?"</em></span> Hiccup nodded. Toothless examined the tail for several more seconds. Then, without warning, he took off. <span><em>"I need to do something. I promise I will return."</em></span></p>
<p>Hiccup watched as Toothless disappeared into the clouds. What did he need to do?</p>
<hr/>
<p>It had been three days. Three days since he had finished Toothless new tail. Three day since Toothless had left. Three days since he had last seen his Bonded. Every time he asked what Toothless was doing, he got the same answer.</p>
<p>
  <em>"What are you doing?"</em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>
    <em>"It is a secret. I promise you will love it."</em>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"You can't know that."</em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>
    <em>"You do not know what I do or do not know."</em>
  </span>
</p>
<p>Honestly, having his own words thrown back at him was fair, if annoying. Toothless' surprise had better be worth the wait.</p>
<p>Sometimes, he wished his wings were fully grown, so he could follow Toothless where he had gone. The nubs had grown in the months since the battle, but Toothless said he probably wouldn't be able to fly for at least four more years.</p>
<p>The others in the village had noticed his change in mood since Toothless left. They knew that Toothless was more to him than just a dragon, and that he probably felt worse than they did.</p>
<p>One morning, Dad came up to him while he was putting his foot on.</p>
<p>"Morning son." Hiccup waved his greeting. "I was looking for your helmet. Odin need a place to put your goodies, after all."</p>
<p>Right. The helmet. The helmet that was currently somewhere at the bottom of the ocean. His helmet.</p>
<p>"…I'll get on that." Hiccup finished tying his foot on and made his way to the door. He stopped when Dad sighed.</p>
<p>"Come on. what's on your mind? Out with it."</p>
<p>"It's nothing. I just <span>n</span>iss Toothless." Dad sighed again, walking up to rest a hand on Hiccup shoulder.</p>
<p>"Listen. I know what it's like to miss someone you love this time of year. But what do we do when they can't be here for the holiday? We celebrate them! I imagine that's exactly what Toothless wants you to do, right?"</p>
<p>He knew Dad was talking about Mum. Toothless wasn't dead, but he got the point. He closed his eyes and reached his mind out to Toothless. Toothless reached back. for a second, Hiccup was on a cliff over the ocean, soaking wet. He opened his eyes and the image was gone.</p>
<p>"You're right Dad." Dad nodded, gripping his shoulder before going back inside.</p>
<hr/>
<p>That afternoon, Hiccup was carrying oars to the docks when he bumped into Fishlegs. The other boy shook nervously, refusing to make eye contact. Hiccup, trying to lighten the atmosphere, attempted to make a joke.</p>
<p>"You hungry? That's enou<span>th</span> to <span>th</span>eed a dragon." Fishlegs turned red and began stammering. Apparently, the joke was not as good as Hiccup had hoped. He would have to work on his joke-making.</p>
<p>"A dragon? That's-" He cut himself off and ran into a barn across the road. He looked back at Hiccup once before opening the door and rushing in.</p>
<p>Well, that was odd. Fishlegs was definitely up to something. Hiccup leaned the oars against the hut next to him and waited.</p>
<p>A few minutes later, Fishlegs came back out. He looked around the area and when he couldn't see anyone, he relaxed. Hiccup watched him walk in the opposite direction to where he came, whistling.</p>
<p>When Fishlegs was gone, Hiccup crossed the road and carefully opened the doors.</p>
<p>Before he could do anything, something large rammed into him. Pushing him off the platform he was on. He managed to grab whatever pushed him just before he fell. Then, he realised it was Meatlug who he was clinging to.</p>
<p>He attempted to talk to her, but she was lost in her instincts. He wouldn't get anything out of her until they arrived at wherever they were going. From the ground, Astrid had noticed him.</p>
<p>"Hiccup, where are you going?" It was too cold in the air to talk, so he gripped Meatlug's head with his legs and raised his arms in an exaggerated shrug. From the barn, Hiccup heard Fishlegs say something, but he couldn't make out the words.</p>
<hr/>
<p>They were flying for almost an hour. They were travelling somewhere slightly south of Helheim's Gate. He and Toothless tended to avoid the place on their flights, so Hiccup had no clue where they were going.</p>
<p>They flew through the fog. It was lighter now than it was with the Red Death. Likely because there were less things burning and, therefore, less smoke to mix with the fog. Hiccup ducked to avoid hitting a boat with a dragon figurehead. It was probably one of Berk's lost ones from the searched for the Nest. At some point, they would have to collect those. It wouldn't do to have them rotting and polluting the water.</p>
<p>When the fog cleared, the first thing Hiccup saw was the island. It was beautiful. A glance up proved that there were at least a dozen island hidden within the fog. All of them crawling with dragons of all kinds.</p>
<p>Meatlug landed on the closest one. She shook herself, finally realising Hiccup was there.</p>
<p>
  <strong>"Hatchling, what are you doing here?"</strong>
</p>
<p><strong>"You flew into me and accidentally brought me with you."</strong> She rumbled softly, dipping for him to get off. When he did so, she began walking towards a group of Gronckles.</p>
<p>
  <strong>"I see. I apologise but I cannot take you back yet. Until I can, feel free to do as you please."</strong>
</p>
<p>He watched her go before a sound to his left caught his attention. A Gronckle was rolling something into a small, deep pool. Hiccup watched as the things sunk to the bottom. Just before they touched the sand, they glowed brightly. A few seconds later, Gronckle hatchlings were emerging from the water.</p>
<p>Oh. It was egg season. That was why Toothless didn't know what they were doing. Because Night Furies didn't have an egg season.</p>
<p>Hiccup noticed an egg that hadn't been pushed into the water. He crept towards it, hands out. When the egg was in his hands, he turned back to the mother. Before he could say anything, the egg exploded in his hands.</p>
<p>Hiccup cried out at the burn, drawing the attention of the surrounding dragons. Almost all of them were from Berk's Nest, so they just went back to what they were doing. A Nadder approached him, growling curiously.</p>
<p><strong>"Apologies. I have never seen an egg hatch before. I did not expect it to explode."</strong> The Nadder tilted his head in surprise. After a few seconds, he joined his family in their group.</p>
<p>It was a good thing those eggs didn't hatch on Berk.</p>
<hr/>
<p>He spent the night wandering between the islands. The dragons all had interesting stories to tell. They accepted him into their group quickly once they knew he spoke their language.</p>
<p>The burns on his hand weren't too bad, but they did hurt. Hiccup could feel the beginning of scales under the damaged skin.</p>
<p>On the eighth island he checked, he found Hookfang lying next to a group of hatchlings. Most likely his own. Hiccup cried in delight, catching Hookfang's attention. He raced towards the dragon. Hookfang presented his snout for Hiccup to hug. Next to them, Stormfly chittered. Hiccup smiled and hugged her neck.</p>
<p><strong>"I missed you."</strong> The dragons rumbled in response. One of Stormfly's hatchlings nuzzled curiously at his leg. He bent down to scratch their snout after a moment, their siblings joined them.</p>
<p>After a few minutes of playing with the hatchings, Hookfang rumbled from his spot next to his mate.</p>
<p><strong>"Hatchling. This is not where you belong. If you would like, I can take you back to your Nest."</strong> Hiccup smiled, standing up.</p>
<p><strong>"I would be grateful. However, you do not have to."</strong> Hookfang shook his head.</p>
<p><strong>"I want to."</strong> He stood up. He walked to Hiccup, bending down for the boy to mount his neck. Once he was secure, Hookfang flapped his wings, lifting them off the ground. When they reached the edge of the island, Hiccup looked back to see that the other dragons had also begun flying.</p>
<p><strong>"You do not have to come with us. Liquid-Flame-Skin-With-Yak-Like-Rider is taking me to my Nest."</strong> The dragons paused. Stormfly flew up next to him.</p>
<p><strong>"Our Instinct tells us that once one leaves, everyone must leave. Now that that Instinct had been activated, we cannot stop it."</strong> Hiccup nodded in understanding. He looked over the islands. All the adults were hovering just above the ground. Their hatchlings, however, couldn't lift themselves off the ground.</p>
<p>If the hatchlings couldn't fly, they would need some other way to get back to their islands. The parents could carry them on their back, but there may end up being too many hatchlings to carry.</p>
<p>The boat he had almost ran into might help. If they carried the extra hatchlings in the boat, they could carry them to Berk. Once they were there, the dragons who weren't from Berk could pick up their hatchlings and, with a few dragons that Hiccup could ask to help, they could carry their hatchlings back to their own Nests.</p>
<p>Decision made, Hiccup told the dragons to wait where they were and guided Hookfang to the boat.</p>
<hr/>
<p>It took a while to get the boat out from the rocks it had impaled itself on, and even longer to find enough spare wood floating around to use as supports so that the frame wouldn't collapse in on itself. Eventually, Hiccup managed to fix the boat up just enough that it wouldn't fall apart before they reached Berk.</p>
<p>The dragons watched in as he worked. Occasionally, he had a Nadder help him nail things together or had a Gronckle hold something up. The hatchlings were fascinated by what he was doing, and got in the way whenever they could. At first the other dragons had attempted to stop them from distracting him, but stopped once he reassured them that he didn't mind.</p>
<p>When the boat was done, the hatchlings rushed to get in. Once everyone had a place, and the dragons tasked with carrying the boat had secure ropes tied around their paws, Hiccup once again mounted Hookfang and they took off.</p>
<p>The flight back to the island took longer than it would have normally. The dragons were tiered from taking care of their hatchlings and the boat being carried between them didn't help.</p>
<p>When they arrived, Hiccup saw that most of the island was already outside, and several buildings were smoking. What had happened?</p>
<p>It took a minute before the Vikings noticed them. When they did, they cheered and swarmed the cliff edge. Hiccup gestured for them to back off. When they did, he asked the dragons to set the boat down in the newly-vacated spot. The was a few moments of silence before the hatchlings emerged. Only a few at first. Then more. When all of the hatchlings were out of the boat, Hiccup untied the ropes from the carriers' paws, leaving them to find their mates and hatchlings.</p>
<p>After he was done, Dad lifted him into a painful, hug. When he let go, he ordered everyone into the Great Hall. Hiccup made sure that the dragons knew they were free to do what they wanted before following Dad.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Hiccup wandered through the hall. He passed dozens of families, happy to be reunited with their friends, or, in some cases, their Bondeds. He stopped in front of Astrid, who was playing with Stormfly's hatchlings.</p>
<p>He was disappointed that Toothless wasn't there, but he had promised to come back, so hiccup knew he would. When Hiccup concentrated on Toothless' mind, he saw flashes of the ocean and the feeling of something cold and hard in his mouth. He had a feeling Toothless would be back soon. He just didn't know when.</p>
<p>He felt excitement from Toothless' side of the Connection and frowned. What was that dragon doing?</p>
<p>Astrid mistook his frown for loneliness and stood up. Nadder hatchlings curled around their legs as Astrid put a comforting hand on Hiccup's shoulder.</p>
<p>"I know this must be hard for you, seeing everyone with their dragons. But you really did a wonderful thing. Thank you." She pulled him into a hug. Her concern was a bit misplaced, but still appreciated. He sighed into her shoulder.</p>
<p>"Where is he?" She hugged tighter. A few seconds later, her head lifted, like she saw something behind him. At the same time, a wave of excitement and delight spread through the Connection. Hiccup had a feeling he knew who was behind him. He felt her smile against his neck before pushing away, trying to hide the smirk on her face.</p>
<p>"Wow, man, I wouldn't want to be you right now. I mean, you brought back everyone's dragons, except yours." She wasn't doing a good job, but he decided to play along.</p>
<p>"You know, this is not hel<span>d</span>ing at all." Astrid reached the point where she couldn't contain her excitement and she pushed Hiccup towards Toothless. When Toothless and Hiccup made eye contact, the two ran toward each other. When they met, Hiccup wrapped his arms around Toothless' neck, and Toothless wrapped his wings around Hiccup's back.</p>
<p>When they separated, Hiccup held Toothless' head in his hands, making an indignant sound.</p>
<p><em>"Where have you been this whole time? I've been so worried! Hang on, what's in your mouth?"</em> Just after he finished the question, Toothless dumped whatever was in his mouth on to Hiccups head. While Hiccup was distracted with the spit all over his face, Toothless answered.</p>
<p><span><em>"Your Head-Guard. I knew that you missed it, so I have been looking for it."</em></span> Once he processed what Toothless had said, Hiccup eyes widened and he took the helmet off to look at it. It had a few dents, and one of the horns was twisted, but other than that, it was in perfect condition, there were no teeth or claw marks, so Toothless had been careful when he was carrying it.</p>
<p>Hiccup felt tears gathering in his eyes, and he hugged his Bonded. He finally had his best friend and the only connection to his mother back.</p>
<p>
  <em>"Thank you, Toothless. Thank you so much."</em>
</p>
<hr/>
<p>Hiccup and Toothless went to bed early that night. Hiccup woke up the next morning the way he usually did, with Toothless pushing him off the bed. He was awake enough to avoid landing on the nubs on his back. Instead, he landed on the still-tender scales that had grown into his hand over the course of the past two days. The beginnings of claws had also started to grow in. Thankfully, when they were fully grown, they would be retractable..</p>
<p>When he made to climb on Toothless' back, the dragon stepped away.</p>
<p><em>"What's wrong Toothless?"</em> Toothless warbled slightly before responding.</p>
<p>
  <span>
    <em>"I wish to use the tail you gave me first."</em>
  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>"…But you can't fly on your own with that tail."</em>
</p>
<p><span><em>"I do not mind. I trust you, and I wish to use what you gave me when you had no reason to."</em></span> Hiccup stopped. It was sweet, what Toothless wanted. It was also impractical. If either of them were separated from each other, Toothless would need to be able to fly.</p>
<p>There was a way. If he could meld the mechanical tail into the design of the original prosthetic, there could be a lever or something similar that meant Toothless could switch between needing Hiccup to fly and being able to fly on his own. It would take a while, but if it worked, they'd end up with something that both parties agreed on.</p>
<p>He relayed his idea to Toothless, after less than a minute of thought, the dragon agreed.</p>
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